


The Complicated Crush

by violet_baudelaire



Category: The Inbetweeners
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attraction, Crush, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Mild Angst, Twins
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-29
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-05-15 18:26:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14795652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/violet_baudelaire/pseuds/violet_baudelaire
Summary: “It’s a shame your mum didn’t pass her fit genes on to your sister,” Jay laughed. “Her name suits her, doesn’t it? She really is a plain Jane.”I felt devastated by his words...I vowed I was going to make Jay regret what he said about me.





	1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: Own nothing, just a fan of The Inbetweeners**

I was sitting in the common room, pretending to be interested in a boring music video that my friend Carli was showing me on her phone. When she was totally immersed in the music, I took the chance to look away from the video. I glanced around the room, my eyes widening when I caught sight of Mark Donovan, the school bully, staring directly at us. I quickly looked away, feeling unsettled. It was not the first time I had seen Mark staring at us. I assumed he had a crush on Carli, but it was still weird as he never approached her about it. Besides, Carli had a boyfriend, Tom. I didn’t like Tom but it was better than Carli dating the psycho who had threatened to kill my twin. I was sure Mark was just exaggerating when he said it, but I felt bad for my brother. Will could be a bit smug at times, he was socially awkward and liked to show off his intelligence too much but he was a good person. He didn’t deserve to have Mark bully him. Sadly, my brother always attracted bullies to him and he had not seemed to have friends when he was at boarding school. Fortunately he had made three new friends at our new school, Rudge Park Comprehensive.

Will walked into the common room with his friends, who were Simon, Neil and Jay. Simon was nice, and hopelessly crushing on Carli. Neil was kind but not very bright. Jay was a compulsive liar, and very rude to his friends – especially my brother who he did not get along with but there was something special about him. I’m sure Jay never really noticed me, I was just his annoying friend’s twin sister but I had noticed him before I even met him officially. Like Simon with his hopeless crush on Carli, I also had a hopeless crush on Jay.

“Carli, I’m just going to go and say hello to my brother quickly, I’ll be back soon alright?” I smiled at the pretty blonde, feeling nervous about her reply. Although I had been friends with Carli for a few weeks now, ever since I was transferred to Rudge Park, I always felt a little on edge with her. She was sweet when she wanted to be, but she could also be quite cutting and mean at times. She was a popular girl, and I was not used to being friends with someone like her.

“I guess so, but make it quick, yeah?” Carli replied, frowning at me as she paused the video. “Louise isn’t here yet and I don’t really want to be sat on my own like some kind of loner. It’s just not...good.” She smiled at me. “You understand, don’t you, hun?”

“Of course, I won’t be gone long,” I hastily got up from the couch we were sitting on and went over to where my brother was sitting with his friends.

“Your mum is well fit,” I heard Neil say to Will as I approached them. Jay and Simon were sitting opposite to them, so I couldn’t see their faces. “Do you think she’d mind dating a younger bloke?”

“No, I’m sure my mum would love to date the _underage_ friend of her teenage son, a guy who is also a complete moron,” Will stated sarcastically, looking disgusted with Neil. “Stop thinking about my mother, and don’t talk about her in my presence. I’ve told you a million times, Neil. Just stop it.”

“It’s a shame your mum didn’t pass her fit genes on to your sister,” Jay laughed, then quietened down when Neil and Will said nothing, both looking at me from where I stood just directly behind Jay and Simon. Neil looked uncomfortable, and my brother looked shocked. Then his expression changed to one of anger. I knew he was not angry at me, he was mad at Jay for insulting me. “What? Hey, it’s the truth. Her name suits her, doesn’t it? She really is a plain Jane.”

 I felt devastated by his words. I had always known Jay did not like me,  he had not ever bothered to be pleasant to me like his friends was but to hear him put me down really hurt me. 

Simon twisted in his seat and his eyebrows rose a little in surprise and dismay when he saw me. “Oh shit,” He looked at Jay. “You’re such a fucking twat, Jay. Jane’s right behind you, she heard it all.” 

I could not stand to be there anymore, so I ran out of the common room. I was so upset I did not even think to watch my surroundings, and I bumped straight into a classroom door that was ajar. I felt the pain of the impact, it was a shock to me as I fell down. My glasses slipped off my face and onto the floor. I sat up on my knees from where I had fallen, bringing my hand to my head. I felt a little dizzy and my face ached. I looked for my glasses, my heart sinking when I saw they were broken. I knew it would take a while for me to get a new pair, and in the mean time I would have to use the contacts the optician had given me to try out. I had never worn contacts before and I did not like the idea of them. I felt bad as I picked up the glasses and studied them more closely. I knew my mum was on a tight budget and it was expensive to get new glasses.

All of a sudden I felt hot tears forming and trickling down my face even as I tried to wipe them away with my hands. I was miserable and at that moment I wished I had never come to Rudge Park. I wanted to be back at my boarding school, which had only been for girls. Before I met Jay I had only fancied actors and singers, guys I knew were unobtainable and that I would never meet. It was different with Jay, although he was just as unobtainable for me I knew him, I saw him every day. He was real, and his rejection stung me deeply.

“Hey, are you ok?”

I gasped when I looked up and saw Mark standing over me. “I, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me,” I stood up onto my feet but I felt dizzy again and I ended up holding onto his arms to keep myself steady.  “Sorry,” I tried to let go of him once the dizzy spell passed, but he put his hands on my shoulders. I had to tilt my face upwards a little to look at him as was so tall compared to me. Mark had a strange, oddly comforting scent, a mixture of smoke, laundry detergent and a musky cologne clung to his uniform. His usual brooding expression was replaced by one that looked like concern.

“I’m gonna take you to the nurse, you have to get this checked out,” He raised a hand to my face, brushing his knuckles against my cheek. Even just the gentle pressure of his hand on my face made me wince. “Yeah, you’re gonna have a nasty bruise, Jane.”

I was surprised he knew my name.  Mostly if people knew me at school, it was through Carli. I was not the type of girl that stood out among the other students. “All right...” I replied, as I could see he really did want to help me. “But you can leave once we get there.”

Mark stayed silent as he walked me to the nurse’s office with his hand resting gently on my lower back. Although it felt surreal to be walking alongside Mark, I was glad he was there. When we got to the nurse’s office, she ushered me inside straight away and shot Mark a look like it was his fault as he left. I quickly explained what happened, not wanting her to think badly of him when he was only being kind to me. She examined me, and told me I would be fine with some rest. The nurse called my mother at work, although I asked her not to do so.

“What happened, petal?” My mother asked as she rushed into the nurse’s office where I had been waiting for around an hour. “Your face looks awful, sweetheart.”

“It was just an accident, mum. I wasn’t looking where I was going, and so...I hit a door.” I sighed. “I’m sorry, mum, I broke my glasses.”

“I’m taking you home, Jane,” My mother hugged me tightly, and then put her arm around me as we walked out of the nurse’s office. “Don’t worry about the glasses, darling. It was time you had a new pair anyway. Perhaps a more modern frame this time...”

I saw Mark leaning against a wall, his hands in his pockets. When he saw us he stood up straight, and smiled at my mother. It was odd for me, as I was not used to seeing him smile. He looked more relaxed, and it suited him more than the sullen or hard expressions he often had on his face. “Hello, Mrs McKenzie. It’s nice to see you again.”

“Hello...Mark, isn’t it? Oh, I hope you and Will sorted out the little disagreement you seem to have. Will is a bit delicate, he can’t withstand too much roughhousing -”

“Mum!” I exclaimed, interrupting her as I was embarrassed on my twin’s behalf. “Let’s go home.”

Mark’s smile turned into a smirk. “Oh yeah, we’ve sorted everything out. I was just waiting to make sure Jane was alright. I found her after she hit her head, you see.”

“Jane, you didn’t tell me about this,” My mother gave me a mildly reproachful look then looked back to Mark. “Thank you for helping my daughter. Would you like to come to dinner tonight at, say, 7pm? You could...what’s the phrase I’m looking for...ah, I know what it is. You could ’hang out’ with Will afterwards. I’m so glad you and he are on good terms again. Will never used to have friends at his old school. Poor little love, he was always so lonely there.”

I tugged on my mother’s arm, horrified that she had invited Mark to our house and had just given him more ammunition to tease my brother about. “Mum, I don’t feel well,” I lied. “Can we go home, _please_?”

“Yeah, sounds good, Mrs McKenzie,” Mark’s gaze fell onto me, a dark intensity in his brown eyes that puzzled me as I was not scared, I was just curious. “I look forward to seeing you and Jane later.” He walked away, turning back to wave at my mother before disappearing into a crowd of students.

I sighed as I looked out of the window of my mother’s car, not really watching as the scenery swiftly changed around us. “Mum....Will’s going to be really upset with you,” I frowned at her, but she paid no notice as she was focused on her driving.

“Don’t be silly, petal. I’m sure this is a good idea. Will may be a little...reluctant at first but I’m sure he and Mark could be great friends. I mean, I admit I wasn’t too sure about Jay’s influence on Will when I met him but now I see he helps Will to not be so serious, so...boring. Like you and Carli, she helps to bring you out of your shell.”

“Will’s not boring, mum. And I wasn’t aware you thought I was an introvert.” I crossed my arms. “Mum, I’m telling you it was a bad idea to invite Mark around.”

“Nonsense, everything will work out fine. And I didn’t mean to say Will was boring. I meant, he’s sensible. And I’m not accusing you of being an introvert, darling, but you always used to stay in your room at boarding school, you never joined any social clubs and you only had two friends who were frankly quite peculiar. That’s one of the reasons we moved here, I had to take you out of that school.”

I fell silent, feeling guilty. My mother always made excuses as to why we moved, when my brother and I knew it was because my father left her for his ditzy receptionist.

When we got home, I went upstairs to my room and found the contact lenses box. I was not keen on wearing contacts, but I needed them to help my vision be clearer until I got my new glasses. So I went into the bathroom and after a little cursing, mild irritation and watery eyes I managed to put them in. I studied myself in the mirror, noticing that the contacts really did make a difference. My frames usually hid much of my face, but now my face was bare. I was not sure if I liked it. I was so used to wearing my glasses; I felt a little lost without them. I had big brown eyes, a nose that was a little too sharp, ears that stuck out slightly and long dark brown hair that was a mass of wild curls. I was thin, with barely any curves and a small chest. I did not consider myself as pretty, but I did not think I was ugly either. I was just – average. I wondered if Jay thought I was ugly.  I knew I should not let it get me down, but it did. It was true I did not look like my mother much; I only had her nose and hair colour.

I spent most of the day writing an essay that was due in a month. It was interesting to me, and also kept me busy so I would not think about Jay so much. When mum reminded me it would be dinner soon I decided to change out of my uniform. I looked into my wardrobe, my hand automatically reaching for a plain navy blue, modest blouse when I hesitated. My eyes landed on the little purple dress with spaghetti straps Carli had forgotten after a sleepover at my house. I had tried to give it back to her, but she told me she was not keen on it and wanted me to have the dress. I had never dared to wear it before as I preferred to wear loose clothes that hid my figure and covered my body. I took the dress off the hanger and threw it on my bed, taking a deep breath before I stripped down to my underwear. Just as I had slipped the purple dress on, my bedroom door burst open. It was Will, and his face was a mixture of annoyance and fear.

“I just heard that Mark Donovan is coming to our house for dinner!” Will exclaimed angrily. “What’s going on, Jane? Why did you willingly interact with a demon in human form?”

“Ever heard of knocking?” I snapped. “I was in the middle of changing just before you rudely barged into my room.”

“Right. Well, I’m sorry about that. However, I will repeat myself, what the hell is going on? How could you even talk to Mark at school after what he did to me? Do you and mum _want_ me to die?” My brother frowned as he looked at me more closely. “What are you wearing?”

I took a baggy black cardigan from my wardrobe and hurriedly put it on. “It’s just a dress that Carli gave me. I just...felt like a change tonight.”

“Oh....I see. This is about what Jay said,” Will shook his head slowly. “Don’t listen to him; he can be such a tosser sometimes. I swear, if it wasn’t for Simon I wouldn’t even be Jay’s mate. I get so tired of all the fantastical phony bullshit that spews out of him like garbage. I think he knows you’re just too good for someone like him. We almost fought after you left and I said he was a stupid, crude chav. Which isn’t true, except for the fact he is crude...I knew it would upset him.”

“Will...” I knew my twin was just trying to make me feel better, and I appreciated it but I did not want him to fall out with his friend because of me. “Don’t talk to him like that. Insulting him will just make things worse. I don’t want you to lose a friend just because he made a rude remark about me.”

Will moved closer and hugged me. I reciprocated his hug, glad I had a brother who cared about me. When Will released me from the hug, he gave me an earnest look. “You always look beautiful to me, Jane.”

I smiled at him. “Thank you, Will.”

“Will! Jane!” My mother called to us from the foot of the stairs. “Come down here, Mark has just arrived!”

“Why does mum do these terrible things to me?” Will complained, and then started to mutter angrily under his breath as he left my room. I caught something about ‘Donovan’ and ‘psychopath’ but that was all.

I put on a touch of tinted lipgloss, which again had belonged to Carli. She had been horrified when she found out I never wore any make-up, and had given it to me saying it suited my complexion. I twisted my hair into a low bun, allowing a few curls to hang free around my face. Before I left my room, I took off the cardigan. I felt a little self-conscious, but I did like the way the dress fit me so snugly. I texted Carli, asking her to give me a makeover. She was the best person to give me advice on fashion, style and makeup. As I walked down the stairs, I vowed I was going to make Jay regret what he said about me.

**Thanks for reading :)**


	2. Chapter Two

**A/N: It has been soooo long since I updated this story but here is Chapter Two!**

**WARNING: I use some insults in this chapter that I do NOT believe or condone, for a bullied character.**

As I walked downstairs, I saw Mark and my mum at the foot of the stairs. Mark was dressed smartly in dark jeans and a grey, long sleeved shirt. He looked surprised when he saw me, his playful smirk fading away. It did not take him long to recover .A bright smile appeared on his face, for my mother’s sake I was sure. “I’m so happy I get to dine with two beautiful ladies tonight.” His smile faded away when Will walked downstairs to stand next to me.  Mark reached out and grabbed hold of Will’s hand, my poor brother wincing as Mark squeezed his hand too tightly. “And it’s good to see you again, mate.”

“Oh, Mark! Such a charmer you are!” My mum laughed, and then frowned at Will as he yanked his hand free of Mark’s hold. “Will! Don’t be rude, say hello and be polite.”

“Mum, you do realize you’ve invited a psychopath into our house?” Will threw his hands up in the air. “I refuse to go along with this utter farce of a dinner and will be staging a peaceful protest in my room. Jane, you are welcome to join me. Goodnight.” He stormed upstairs, my mum placing a hand over her mouth in shock before she chased after him.

She looked back when she was halfway up the stairs. “So sorry about this, Mark. Jane, I need to have a chat with your brother. Take Mark into the dining room and the two of you can start eating.”

“Right through here, then.” I led the way into the dining room, as I glanced back I saw Mark’s eyes were trained on my body. He did not stop looking when he saw I had caught him. Instead he winked at me. I could feel heat rushing to my face. I felt uncomfortable, but more ashamed that a part of me liked the way he had looked at me. No boy had ever looked at me like they were admiring me before. “Actually, I’ve just forgotten something upstairs.” I ran upstairs to get my cardigan, and on my way back I saw Will being embraced by mum while she half-heartedly told him off.

I took a deep breath, wrapping the cardigan around myself securely before walking back down. Mark had already dished up some of the chicken pie, mash, gravy and vegetables. He was tucking into the food, like he was in his own home. He patted the seat next to him when he saw me. “Come and sit with me. Your mum’s cooking is well good, isn’t it?”

I made up a plate of food and sat down next to Mark, pointedly ignoring him while I ate until I could not stand the silence anymore. “Look, Mark...Why did you come here really? Just to mess with my brother some more? Because your plan failed. Will is stronger than you give him credit for.”

Mark set down his knife and fork and turned in his chair slightly to face me. “Do you think I’d waste my time coming round here to see that twerp? Nah. I came to see you again, Jane.” He brought his hand up to my face and gently tugged on one of the curls framing my face. “For a smart girl sometimes you can be so unaware.”

He could not mean what I thought he meant. “That’s a good joke. You know, for a few hours today I thought maybe, just maybe, that you had a small amount of human decency.” I tried to move his hand away from my hair but he quickly twisted his grip around so he was holding my hand instead. His grip was firm and I could not pull my hand away. The warmth of his hand felt nice but it also felt wrong somehow.  I wondered if that was because he was not Jay. “Mark, stop teasing me. Please, I’m not having a good day and I can’t handle this right now.”

“You come downstairs in that little purple number, looking so fit and you’re saying _I’m_ the one teasing _you_?” His eyebrows furrowed slightly as he gave me a sceptical look. “Come off it, Jane.”

“Jane!” It was my brother, and he sounded dismayed. I reluctantly looked back over my shoulder and saw him standing there with Mum. The expression on Will’s face was a mixture of disgust and shock.

Mum’s eyes were very wide, and she seemed stunned. “Oh, petal. Is there something you and Mark want to tell me?”

“I really like your daughter, Mrs McKenzie. And she likes me too.” Mark stated confidently. “She wanted to keep it a secret, but I told her I couldn’t lie. Not to you, Mrs McKenzie.”

“Wait just a minute – ”

“He’s a liar!” Will practically screamed, interrupting me as a red angry flush slowly appeared on his face. “He’s mad, mum, I told you he is. Jane would never look twice at a hooligan like him. And he used to date Charlotte, she’s this gorgeous blonde -  Jane is not the kind of girl he goes for although she is very pretty and far too good to let herself be ruined by dating a bully like Donovan. This is some kind of twisted revenge on me, because I fancy-” Will stopped suddenly, choking on his words. “I mean, this is ridiculous. Jane, care to explain what the fuck is happening here?”

“Language, darling,” Mum admonished Will. “Go and sit down, I’m going to go and warm up this food in the microwave. Now, William,” Mum snapped, losing her patience when she saw that he was just standing there not moving. “Otherwise you can forget about going out with your friends this weekend, young man.”

“That’s not fair, mum,” Will’s shoulders slumped as he reluctantly walked over to the table and sat down opposite me and Mark. As soon as mum had gone into the kitchen, he glared at Mark like he wanted to kill him. “Leave my sister alone, Donovan,” He hissed angrily. “Jane, stop _touching_ him.”

“Make me, you little prick,” Mark replied quietly yet menacingly, glancing around to make sure my mum was not watching before he used his free hand to flip Will off. “You’re lucky your sister and your mum are here, otherwise you’d be dead right now. Don’t you ever disrespect me, especially not in front of my girl.”

“Mark, let me go,” I urged him but he stubbornly set his jaw and refused to let go of my hand. “You’re taking this joke too far now, can’t you see that?”

My mum appeared with two hot plates of food; she set one down in front of my brother and sat down next to him with her own plate. “Keep eating, everyone.” She looked at me and Mark in a way that faintly bordered on disbelief. “Mark. You aren’t playing a trick on Jane, are you? I have to admit that my son is right about it not making sense for you and Jane to be together. My daughter is somewhat of a shy introvert and you’re in one of the cool groups at school, I imagine.”

It hurt that my mother just assumed Mark would not be interested in me. Yes, it was unlikely but it was not impossible. “Mum!” I exclaimed sharply. “Is it so hard to believe that a good looking, popular guy would like your plain bookworm of a daughter?”

“I would never say you were plain, you’re beautiful to me, petal,” My mum seemed taken aback. “I’m so sorry, Jane. If you and Mark like each other, that’s fine by me.”

“Yes, we do like each other,” I lied.

 My brother looked at me like I had betrayed him. “You don’t mean that, Jane.”

It cut me deeply to hurt him, but if I was going to follow through on my plan to make Jay regret what he had told me then fake dating the school’s resident bully could be helpful. The way Carli treated Simon flashed into my mind and I felt guilty all of a sudden. If Mark did really like me then I would be using him. So I told myself my brother was right, that Mark was just playing around with me to mess with Will’s head. In which case, I was not harming Mark at all. “I...I do mean it, Will.”

“May I be excused from the table? I’m not hungry anymore,” Will pushed his plate away and when mum nodded at him he quickly disappeared upstairs.

“It is getting quite late now. Can I give you a ride home, Mark?” My mum asked, as she started clearing away the plates. “I hope you enjoyed the dinner, despite the interruptions. Will must be a little jealous, poor little lamb. He’s never really had much luck with girls, unfortunately.”

“Dinner was delicious, Mrs McKenzie, thank you,” Mark stood up, pulling me onto my feet as well. Our hands were still joined together, except now I had entwined my fingers with his. “Don’t worry about me; I’m getting a lift from a mate. Do you mind if I say goodbye to Jane outside?”

“Ah...As long as it’s a short goodbye, that’s fine.” My mum waved a finger at us. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, Jane.”

“Goodnight, Mrs McKenzie,” Mark led me over to the front door, and I hesitated before I let him pull me outside. He finally let go of my hand, and although it was what I had wanted, I missed his touch. “I know you think I’m playing around but this is for real. You don’t like me yet, but in time I know you will.” He leaned down, his eyes focused on my mouth as I felt his breath on my face. I turned my head and his lips brushed past my cheek. Mark stepped back, a frown settling on his face.   “That’s not very nice, Jane. But...it’s okay. I can be patient.”

I knew I should tell him off for trying to kiss me, but I could not do it. A part of me had wanted to know what it would be like to be kissed, but I stupidly still pictured Jay’s face in my mind giving my first kiss. “It’s time for you to leave, Mark,” I replied coolly, acting calm although I was sure he could see right through me. See that I was so confused. “Goodnight.”

Mark smirked at me. “Sure, Jane. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” It sounded like a threat and a promise at the same time. “Goodnight.”

I walked back into the house and shut the door, sighing heavily as I went up to my room. I had the feeling it would be a bad day tomorrow.

The next morning I waved at Carli from across the common room as I crossed the room to where she was sitting with Louisa. I frowned when she saw me but kept talking to Louisa like I did not exist. “Hello...?” I sat down next to Carli. “Earth to Carli?”

“Did you hear someone say something?” Carli asked Louisa, sweeping her fair hair away from her face. “It’s boring here; let’s go outside for a little bit.” She stood up and Louisa stood with her. Carli gave me a frosty stare before she linked arms with Louisa and walked away with her. As she went she whispered something in Louisa’s ear that caused Louisa to look back at me then they both burst into laughter. I did not understand what I had done wrong, but after a few minutes I realized. Yesterday I had just left Carli alone in the common room; I didn’t even tell her I was going home early from school. I felt bad for forgetting, and it hurt to see Carli shutting me out but yet I did not think what I had done was that bad.

Will and his friends had done much worse things to each other, and their friendship always endured. Then again, there was a sense of realness to their friendship that I knew deep down I did not have with Carli. It had felt good at first, to be friends with someone so popular who surprisingly seemed so sweet but over time I had found out Carli had a mean streak which she kept hidden for the most part. I took out my phone and sent a quick message to her saying sorry for what I had done.

I knew she had read my message, but she continued ignoring me and she made sure I could not sit near her in the few classes we shared. By lunchtime I was thoroughly miserable. I did not even attempt to sit at Carli’s table, there would be no point. So I found myself sitting with John. I had met him on my first day at Rutledge, he was one of the other newcomers to the school. We had not interacted much since then, my brother had no time for him and I was too busy maintaining my friendship with Carli. “Thanks for letting me sit here.”

“No problem, Jane. I mean, there are always free seats at my table.” John replied, biting into his second dismal looking overcooked hamburger. “These burgers are tiny, don’t you think so?”

“I guess. I don’t really eat school burgers. They always look a bit...”  I stopped talking, not wanting to continue as John stopped chewing and stared at me blankly. “Nevermind, you just enjoy your burger.” I finished off my homemade tuna sandwich and drank some strawberry smoothie.

“Thanks, Jane. I will,” John commenced chewing his burger, and then smiled at me. His face now had a drip of mayonnaise running down his chin. “That was really tasty. Not as nice as my mum’s, but she gets her meat from the local butchers and handmakes the burgers.”

“John, you’ve got a little mayo there,” I pointed to the corner of his mouth. “You might want to wipe your face.”

“Ah...” John brushed the mayonnaise with the back of his hand, but only succeeded in making it worse, the mayonnaise smeared over his mouth and chin. “Did I get it?”

“Almost, John. Let me help you,” I picked up a paper napkin and leaned across the table to clean his face. “Just stay still for a moment...” I was stopped by a hand grabbing hold of my wrist. I looked up to see Mark standing there, his friend Jake at his side. “I thought you weren’t at school today.”

“Get lost, you fat prick,” Mark snapped. “Don’t come near Jane again or you’re gonna regret it, yeah?”

“Mark!” I exclaimed angrily, pulling my wrist free from his hold.  “Leave John alone.”

“It really stinks here. Never heard of body spray, Big John?” James remarked scornfully as he waved his hand over his face. “Did you even take a shower today?”

“I better go,” John muttered, quickly scurrying off and leaving the rest of his food uneaten.

“Are you happy now? You’ve really upset him.” I sighed, feeling guilty for Mark’s presence at the table which had caused John to suffer. “What do you want?”

Jake laughed. “Yeah, I’ve never seen him leave a plate full of food. He’s always stuffing his gob full of food, the big slob.”

“Jake, I’ll catch up with you later.” Mark sat down next to me and Jake walked away. “Yeah, I bunked off the first few periods. But I came back just to see you.”

“Can you just leave me alone?” I snapped at him, keeping my voice low. “Yesterday was just a mistake. I must have been out of my mind. Lying to my family and forgetting who you really are.”

“Who I really am?” Mark asked, sitting back in his seat and crossing his arms. “You don’t know me, Jane.”

“I don’t want to know you,” I replied coldly, getting up from my seat and pretending his words weren’t having any effect on me. “Just stay away from me.” I walked away from the table but Mark followed me out of the cafeteria. “I told you, just stay away from me.”

“No, Jane. Let me talk to you...please?” Mark pleaded, holding his hand out to me with a rueful look on his face. “I’m sorry I was acting like that before. It’s stupid but I was a little jealous.”

I stared at Mark thoughtfully. He seemed so different to how I usually saw him, and I realized that I was seeing behind his self-confident, stony persona. He seemed vulnerable all of a sudden and I relented, taking hold of his hand as we continued to walk. “There’s nothing between me and John. He’s a nice  guy, and I just needed to sit with someone at lunch. Carli’s mad at me so I couldn’t sit with her. You know it’s funny... I always thought you liked Carli.”

“Nah, she’s not my type.” Mark quickly denied. “Look, just because I dated Charlotte, it doesn’t mean I only like blondes. Didn’t you notice me looking at you when I saw you around school? I mean I tried to hide it but I know I didn’t do a good job of it.”

I looked away, feeling heat rise inside, bringing a pink flush onto my face. It was a lot to take in. All along he had been staring at me and not Carli. Me, Jane McKenzie and not Carli D’Amato.  “Mark...”

“Jane?” I stopped walking when I heard the familiar voice. It was Jay, and he was staring at us with disbelief written all over his face. “So it’s true then? You and him?”

“It’s none of your fucking business, Cartwright,” Mark snapped, releasing my hand and advancing upon Jay in a threatening manner. “Get out of my face. Now, you little twat.”

I wrapped my arms around Mark from behind, holding his waist. “Just leave it, Mark. Don’t worry about him.” I leaned around Mark’s side, anxious to stop Jay getting hurt. “Go, Jay. Just go, he’s right – it’s none of your business.”

Jay shrugged, acting nonchalant but I could tell he was a little nervous. “Yeah, whatever. I ain’t scared of him, yeah? Just got better things to do, that’s all.” He muttered something inaudible as he walked away, his eyebrows furrowed from the deep frown that had settled on his face.

I let go of Mark but he caught hold of my hands. “Don’t move yet. It’s nice, us being so close together.”

He was right. It was nice to be pressed up close to him, the scent of laundry detergent and smoke mingling with clung to his skin was a comforting one. Yet it also felt wrong.  There was no enticing scent of Lynx Excite, which I always noticed with Jay. I hated Lynx generally, because guys tended to think they should spray half the can on themselves but Jay always used just the right amount. “We should get to class.” I let go of Mark and he turned to face me.

“I guess so,” He replied, sounding unenthusiastic. “Give me your phone for a sec, then.”

I took my phone out of my bag and handed it to him. “Are you putting your number in?”

“No...” Mark looked down at the phone, his fingers running across the touch screen at a fast pace. “I’m calling myself to get your number. And...It looks like you just sent me a friend request on Facebook.”

I snatched my phone back. “Mark, I didn’t give you permission to look at my Facebook.”

“It’s not like you’ve got anything to hide from me, have you?” He replied, with a smirk. “But sure, I won’t do it again. I promise.”

“Well, okay. Make sure that you don’t. I have to go; I don’t want to be late. ” I hesitated, and then hugged Mark quickly before I left.

“I’ll see you soon, Jane!” Mark yelled after me as I went, causing some other students to stare at us.

When I walked into my Sociology classroom, Carli beckoned me over to her table with a bright smile. “Come sit with us, babes.”

Louisa, who was sitting opposite Carli, scowled at me. “Carli, I don’t think there’s going to be space. Remember, you invited Helen to come and sit next to you.”

“What? No, I didn’t,” Carli replied, her smile becoming strained. “Shut up, Louisa.”

“Ow!” Louisa exclaimed, reaching under the table to rub her leg. “You just kicked me.”

“Oh, did I?” Carli replied with an innocent expression. “I’m sorry, it was an accident.” She stood up from her seat and ushered me over to sit next to her. “So what’s happening with you and Mark Donovan?”

Although I was relieved Carli had forgiven me, I knew it was just because she was curious about me and Mark. And I knew she would not apologize for shutting me out. But she was my best friend at Rutledge. I needed her, more than she needed me. So I returned her smile. “Well...it all started yesterday...” I omitted a lot of details about meeting Mark, knowing Carli and her way of using people’s words against them later on and I told her I wanted to help me create a new look. I told her it was for me and to impress Mark. I did not mention Jay, or my crush on him. Carli had a low opinion of him and besides Louisa would be the first person she would tell. As Louisa disliked me, she would have spread it all over the school. And the worst part would be that Mark would find out. I could not let that happen.

**Thanks for reading :)**

 

 

 

 


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